RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        24 AUGUST 2006
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20050015877


      I certify that hereinafter is recorded the true and complete record
of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in
the case of the above-named individual.

|     |Mr. Carl W. S. Chun               |     |Director             |
|     |Ms. Deborah L. Brantley           |     |Senior Analyst       |

      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Ms. Jeanette McCants              |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Scott Faught                  |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Rowland Heflin                |     |Member               |

      The Board considered the following evidence:

      Exhibit A - Application for correction of military records.

      Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including advisory opinion,
if any).

THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant requests that his records be corrected to reflect award
of a second Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states he sustained a gunshot wound to his right thumb in
early 1970 and that in October or November 1970 he was shot in the back of
the neck. He notes he was never awarded a second Purple Heart.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of his separation document.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  Records available to the Board indicate the applicant entered active
duty on 25 December 1968 and was initially trained as an infantryman.  In
July 1969 he was assigned to the 4th Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment as
an infantryman.

2.  The applicant was wounded in action on 7 August 1969 by small arms fire
while on a combat operation.  He received a wound to the right thumb.
Orders issued by the 67th Evacuation Hospital confirmed his award of the
Purple Heart.  The applicant’s August 1969 combat wound is well documented
in available records and was included as an entry on a roster of
individuals reported as combat casualties during the Vietnam War.

3.  On 18 November 1969 the applicant was discharged for the purpose of
immediate reenlistment and on 2 December was reassigned to duties as a
truck driver with the 183rd Aviation Company in Vietnam.  In May 1970 he
was reassigned as a crew chief with that same organization.

4.  The applicant returned to the United States in July 1970 and on 30 June
1972 was honorably discharged as a result of his pre-existing allergic
asthma condition.  His single award of the Purple Heart is reflected on his
separation document.

5.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent part,
that the Purple Heart is awarded for a wound sustained as a result of
hostile action.  Substantiating evidence must be provided to verify that
the wound was the result of hostile action, the wound must have required
treatment by a medical officer, and the medical treatment must have been
made a matter of official record.



6.  A review of Department of the Army Pamphlet 672-3 (Unit Citation and
Campaign Participation Credit Register) notes the applicant would have been
credited with participating in four designated campaigns (Vietnam
Counteroffensive Phase VII, Vietnam Summer-Fall 1969, Vietnam Winter-Spring
1970, and Sanctuary Counteroffensive) during the applicant’s period of
assignment.  Four bronze service stars on the Vietnam Service Medal, which
is recorded on his separation document, should reflect his campaign
participation.  The applicant is also entitled to an award of the Republic
of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation with Palm and a Republic of
Vietnam Civil Actions Honor Medal First Class Unit Citation which were
awarded to the 4th Battalion of the 503rd Infantry during his tenure with
the organization.  The unit awards were also omitted from his separation
document.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  While the applicant’s combat wound to his thumb is well documented in
available records, there is no medical evidence, nor has the applicant
provided any which confirms he was wounded a second time while in Vietnam.
In the absence of such evidence, there is no basis for a second award of
the Purple Heart.

2.  In order to justify correction of a military record the applicant must
show, or it must otherwise satisfactorily appear, that the record is in
error or unjust.  The applicant has failed to submit evidence that would
satisfy that requirement.

3.  Evidence shows that the applicant’s records contain administrative
error which does not require action by the Board.  Therefore,
administrative correction of the applicant’s records will be accomplished
by the Case Management Support Division (CMSD), St. Louis, Missouri, as
outlined by the Board in paragraph 2 of the BOARD
DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION section below.


BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

___JM  __  ___SF __  __RH ___  DENY APPLICATION
BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable
error or injustice.  Therefore, the Board determined that the overall
merits of this case are insufficient as a basis for correction of the
records of the individual concerned.

2.  The Board determined that administrative error in the records of the
individual should be corrected.  Therefore, the Board requests that the
CMSD-St. Louis administratively correct the records of the individual
concerned to show entitlement to four bronze service stars on his Vietnam
Service Medal, the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation with
Palm and a Republic of Vietnam Civil Actions Honor Medal First Class Unit
Citation.




                                  ____ Jeanette McCants______
                                            CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20050015877                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |20060824                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)    |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |AR . . . . .                            |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |DENY                                    |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES         1.       |107.00                                  |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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